On the biggest stage of his life, Fernando Mendoza sounded less like a Heisman-winning quarterback and more like a philosophy professor on loan from Bloomington’s lecture halls.
All season, they said that Indiana couldn’t possibly be this good. They were right. Indiana wasn’t this good.
It was better.
Perhaps no one is enjoying the ride more than billionaire entrepreneur and IU graduate Mark Cuban.
The last time Indiana and Oregon met, it was a proving ground. This time, it's a proving ground with a ticket to the national championship.
Mendoza has long credited a sports psychologist for helping him bring structure to his mental preparation.
When Oregon comes calling Friday with its pressure packages, Indiana won’t be guessing. The Hoosiers will rely on what they’ve done all year: run the ball, stay on schedule, and find the matchups they like.
Curt Cignetti has one facial expression. It's somewhere between "You call that a first down?" and "The waiter brought me the wrong steak."
Follow WDRB for coverage from Atlanta as Indiana and Oregon kick off at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
It looks like man. It plays like zone. Its rushes come from nowhere. The quarterback thinks he sees it. Then he doesn’t.
Beating a great team once is hard. Beating a great team twice? That’s a trick reserved for magicians, card sharks or the kind of football teams that wind up making history.